Chronicle Books Blog

We’ve just released Sanjay Patel’s book Ramayana and… it’s gorgeous. Sanjay has been an illustrator at Pixar for awhile now (almost 13 years!), so I thought you might be interested to hear about his creative process, how he got started, and some of his favorites. I asked him a few questions…

(And I wanted to share this photo that Sanjay has up on his site, because it’s just about the cutest kid photo EVER.)

What was your inspiration to tell this story?
Well I finally read the thing. I mean I suck at reading and everything. But I came across a great adaptation of the Ramayana by an author named Ashok Banker. I actually discovered the book via Nina Paley’s blog. She’s the one woman force behind Sita Sings the Blues, the feature length animated work about the same subject. After reading a few pgs on Amazon I ordered the first book by Mr. Banker which weighed in at over five hundred pgs. Keep in mind that was just book one of a seven part series. I just read and read and the thing slowly unlocked. And what I found was an ancient mythology with themes and symbols that were timeless and essential. Really meaningful stuff all wrapped up in a visually rich world of epic adventure. The story was just begging to be illustrated.

How did you get started working at Pixar?
The only thing I was ever good at was copying drawings from comic books. I just drew, and nothing could ever get me to stop. All throughout school I was considered “the artist,” which really just meant that I could make really bad drawings for people’s letterman jackets. A friend told me about Cal-Arts and animation. The school was the key. Most of Pixar’s directors have come straight out of Cal-Arts and its character animation program. I just walked in their footsteps and they ended up recruiting me after my second year. I’ve been at Pixar ever since, close to thirteen years now.

Describe your creative process. How do you create your illustrations?
Download LankaFireProcess.pdf.

How long did it take you to create the scenes in the book?
At one point the illustrations were getting churned out at about one every two and half days. I was at a good clip till I decided to redo the entire book three times. I kept fighting with trying to make the art lighthearted and cute, but the story was anything but that. The Ramayana is pretty dramatic and graphic, and I eventually found a style and voice that captured those things. It only took me four years.

Which characters in the Ramayana did you have the most fun illustrating?
I can doodle Ravana the ten-headed demon king in my sleep at this point. I also love sketching Hanuman and Rama. They both have really fun shapes to fiddle with. The cover of the book was actually a blast, it was probably the last illustration I did.

The cover of Ramayana

Sanjay’s Favorites

Favorite Illustrators
Marc Boutavant
J Otto Seibold
Saul Steinberg
William Steig
Ronald Searle
Richard Scarry
Martin & Alice Provenson
Mary Blair
Charley Harper
M. Sasek
T. Biskup
Lewis Trondheim

Favorite Movies
Back to the Future
Amelie
Wrong Trousers
Raiders of the Lost Ark
The Mission
Raising Arizona
Princess Mononoke
Dumbo
Abyss
Bottle Rocket

Favorite Bands
That’s a toss up between M83 and Sigur Ros.

Favorite Restaurants
Usually places that serve french fries and hot sauce.

Favorite Books
Phoenix Karma by Osamu Tezuka
Calvin & Hobbes Tenth Anniversary by Bill Watterson
Angry Youth Comix by Johnny (really *expletive* funny) Ryan

Cheers,
Hannah deBree
Entertainment Marketing Manager

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